[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 17 (Wednesday, January 27, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4079-4082]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-1856]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
a Transuranic Waste Treatment Facility at Oak Ridge, TN

AGENCY: Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) intends to prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) and its implementing regulations on the proposed 
construction, operation, and decontamination/decommissioning of a 
Transuranic (TRU) Waste Treatment Facility at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The 
four types of TRU waste that would be treated at the facility are 
remote-handled (RH)-TRU waste sludge, low-level radioactive waste 
supernatant associated with the sludge, contact-handled (CH)-TRU/alpha 
low-level radioactive waste solids, and RH-TRU/alpha low-level 
radioactive waste solids. Because much of the waste displays Resource 
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) characteristics, the proposed 
facility would be permitted under RCRA. All the waste DOE proposes to 
treat currently is stored at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in 
Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The proposed site for the treatment facility is 
adjacent to the Melton Valley Storage Tanks, where the waste sludge and 
supernatant are being stored.
    DOE invites the public, organizations, and agencies to present oral 
or written comments concerning the scope of the EIS, including the 
issues the EIS should address and the alternatives it would analyze.

DATES: The public scoping period begins on the date of this publication 
and continues until February 26, 1999. Written comments submitted by 
mail should be postmarked by the closing date to ensure consideration. 
Comments mailed after that date will be considered to the extent 
practicable.
    DOE will conduct public scoping meetings to assist in defining the 
appropriate scope of the EIS and to identify significant environmental 
issues to be addressed. These meetings will be held at the following 
time(s) and location:
    February 11, 1999, American Museum of Science and Energy, 300 South 
Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830; Time: 6:30-9:30 p.m.
    February 16, 1999, American Museum of Science and Energy, 300 South 
Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830; Time: 6:30-9:30 p.m.

ADDRESSES: Please direct comments or suggestions on the scope of the 
EIS, requests to speak at the public scoping meetings, requests for 
special accommodations to enable participation at scoping meetings 
(e.g., interpreter for the hearing-impaired), and questions concerning 
the project to: Gary L. Riner, U.S. Department of Energy, Oak Ridge 
Operations Office, P.O. Box 2001, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, 
telephone: (423) 241-3498, facsimile: (423) 576-5333, or e-mail 
[email protected].
    For general information on the DOE NEPA process, please contact: 
Carol M. Borgstrom, Director, Office of NEPA Policy and Assistance, EH-
42, U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, 
Washington, D.C. 20585-0119, telephone: (202) 586-4600 or leave a 
message at (800) 472-2756.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Research and development activities supporting national defense and 
energy initiatives have been performed at ORNL since its construction 
in eastern Tennessee in 1943, generating radioactive and hazardous 
waste legacies that now pose environmental concerns. Meeting the 
cleanup challenges associated with legacy TRU waste is a high priority 
for the DOE, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation 
(TDEC), and stakeholders. The TRU waste treatment project at the ORNL 
will be an important component of DOE cleanup efforts at the site.
    TRU waste is radioactive waste that is not classified as high-level 
radioactive waste and that contains more than 100 nanocuries per gram 
of alpha-emitting transuranic (atomic numbers greater than 92) isotopes 
with half-lives greater than 20 years. Alpha low-level radioactive 
waste contains alpha-emitting transuranic isotopes with half-lives 
greater than 20 years at concentrations less than 100 nanocuries per 
gram.
    The TRU waste to be treated also contains beta- and gamma-emitting 
isotopes in addition to alpha-emitting isotopes, which result in its 
classification as either CH (surface dose rate of 200 mrem/hr or less) 
or RH (surface dose rate of greater than 200 mrem/hr).
    Solid waste at ORNL is a heterogeneous mixture consisting of paper, 
glass, rubber, cloth, plastic, and metal from glove boxes, fuel 
processing, hot cells, and reactors. Solid waste is currently packaged 
in metal boxes, drums and concrete overpacks, and stored in RCRA 
permitted facilities. Most of the solid waste containers do not meet 
current Department of Transportation regulations and would require 
repackaging prior to shipment.
    Based on generator records, the solid waste has been classified as 
either TRU or alpha low-level radioactive waste. However, because the 
nature of the solid waste can only be confirmed after retrieval and 
characterization, solid wastes addressed in this Notice of Intent are 
characterized as ``TRU/alpha low-level radioactive waste'' to note the 
current uncertainty. The solid waste may contain RCRA characteristic 
metals, but generator records do not indicate the presence of any RCRA 
listed constituents. The supernatant, the liquid layer covering the 
sludge in the tanks, is considered a low-level waste but is not 
considered hazardous under the RCRA definitions.
    Approximately 62 percent of the legacy TRU wastes are currently 
stored in 50 year-old tanks. The remaining 38 percent of the legacy TRU 
wastes are currently stored in subsurface trenches, vaults, and metal 
buildings.
    Approximate quantities of the four primary waste streams needing

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treatment are: 900 m \3\ of RH-TRU sludge, located in the tanks; 1600 m 
\3\ of low-level supernatant, located in tanks; 550 m \3\ of RH-TRU 
waste/alpha low-level radioactive waste solids in vaults and trenches; 
and 1,000 m \3\ of CH-TRU waste/alpha low-level radioactive waste 
solids in metal buildings.

Purpose and Need for Agency Action

    The DOE needs to ensure the safe and efficient retrieval, 
processing, certification, and disposition of legacy TRU waste at ORNL. 
There are legal mandates for DOE to address TRU waste management needs. 
DOE has been directed by the TDEC and the U. S. Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) to address environmental issues including 
disposal of its legacy TRU waste. DOE is under a Commissioner's Order 
issued by the State of Tennessee (September 1995) to implement the Site 
Treatment Plan, under the Federal Facility Compliance Act, that 
mandates specific requirements for the processing and disposal of 
ORNL's TRU waste. The primary milestone in the Commissioner's Order is 
that DOE begin processing TRU sludge in order to make the first 
shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) (a DOE transuranic 
waste disposal facility) in New Mexico by January 2003. In addition, 
two Records of Decision issued in connection with the Federal Facility 
Agreement among EPA, TDEC, and DOE, under the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, mandate that 
the waste from the Gunite and Associated Tanks Project (in Bethel 
Valley) and the Old Hydrofracture Facility Tanks Project (in Melton 
Valley) be processed and disposed of along with the TRU waste from the 
Melton Valley Storage Tanks.
    Waste retrieval operations are currently underway to prepare ORNL 
TRU waste storage tanks for closure, and the waste removed from the 
Bethel Valley tanks will be consolidated in the Melton Valley Storage 
Tanks before processing. After processing, TRU waste must be certified 
for shipment to and disposal at WIPP, and any low-level radioactive 
waste resulting from TRU waste processing must be certified for 
shipment to and disposal at the DOE site(s) to be selected in a Record 
of Decision for the Waste Management Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement for Managing Treatment, Storage, and Disposal of Radioactive 
and Hazardous Waste (WM PEIS) (DOE/EIS-0200-F, May 1997). No facilities 
for processing TRU/alpha low level radioactive waste exist at the Oak 
Ridge Reservation.

Proposed Action and Alternatives

Proposed Action

    Under the proposed action, a waste treatment facility for the ORNL 
legacy TRU waste would be constructed, operated, and decontaminated/
decommissioned under a contract awarded to the Foster Wheeler 
Environmental Corporation. Under the contract, the action would be 
carried out in four phases: Phase I, Licensing and Permitting 
(currently in process, includes DOE's NEPA analysis and contractor 
design activities); Phase II, Construction and Pre-Operational Testing; 
Phase III, Treatment and Packaging; Phase IV, Decontamination and 
Decommissioning. If the current NEPA review results in the selection of 
an alternative other than the proposed action, Phase II (Construction 
and Pre-Operational Testing) of the contract would not be executed. 
Waste volume reduction would be a major component of the processing in 
order to minimize waste generation and costs and to conserve resources. 
After processing, the waste would be certified for disposal as either 
low-level radioactive, alpha low-level radioactive, or TRU waste, as 
discussed above.
    All activities associated with the proposed action must be 
performed safely and in compliance with applicable Federal and state 
regulatory requirements. Foster Wheeler Environmental Corporation would 
be responsible for achieving compliance with all applicable 
environmental, safety and health laws and regulations, and regulatory 
agencies would be responsible for monitoring the Corporation's 
compliance. The State of Tennessee and EPA would regulate the 
Corporation according to permits under their purview. DOE would 
regulate occupational safety and health and nuclear safety according to 
specific environment, safety and health requirements.
    DOE would lease the Melton Valley Storage Tanks, subject to 
notification of EPA and the State of Tennessee, and an adjacent land 
area totaling approximately 10 acres to Foster Wheeler Environmental 
Corporation for construction of the facility. The Melton Valley Storage 
Tanks are separate from ORNL's main plant area. The proposed treatment 
facility would be fenced, with controlled access to Tennessee State 
Highway 95.
    Foster Wheeler Environmental Corporation has proposed a process of 
evaporating and drying the sludges and supernatant that is flexible 
enough to address a wide range of waste properties. The low temperature 
treatment would reduce waste volume, generate additional waste as a 
result of treatment, and meet specified waste acceptance criteria. To 
ensure that the waste would meet RCRA Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) 
standards, additives that reduce the solubility of the RCRA metals in 
the waste would be added to form stable compounds. The dried stabilized 
sludge would pass the Toxic Characteristic Leaching Procedures and no 
longer exhibit a RCRA characteristic. The relatively inexpensive 
stabilization process could be easily performed during the overall 
treatment process and would result in waste that meets the LDR 
treatments standards and could be stored on site, if necessary, pending 
disposal. The supernatant would be dried for final disposal at an 
approved DOE low-level radioactive waste disposal site consistent with 
a WM PEIS Record of Decision yet to be issued for low-level radioactive 
waste. Segregation of the supernatant from the sludge would result in 
significant life-cycle cost avoidance when compared to disposal at 
WIPP.
    The proposed action includes no treatment for the bulk of the solid 
waste that is not regulated under RCRA other than repackaging with some 
compaction to meet the 50% volume reduction required by the contract. 
The solid waste would be better characterized during the repackaging 
effort to achieve final waste form certification before disposal. RCRA 
characteristic items would be isolated for macroencapsulation or other 
processing techniques to comply with applicable RCRA LDRs. This would 
ensure that alpha low-level radioactive waste would meet non-RCRA low-
level waste disposal requirements and comply with RCRA LDRs if interim 
storage is required on site.

Alternatives

    DOE will consider alternatives to the proposed action, such as 
shipment of TRU wastes to other DOE sites for processing, alternative 
technologies for sludge waste, and no action. Under a shipment 
alternative, DOE would ship CH-TRU/alpha low-level and RH-TRU/alpha 
low-level radioactive waste solids to other DOE site(s) for processing. 
Most of the solid waste containers do not meet current Department of 
Transportation regulations and would require repackaging prior to 
shipment. After processing, the waste would be certified for disposal 
as either low-level radioactive, alpha low-level radioactive, or TRU 
waste and transported to appropriate disposal facilities. Under a 
treatment alternative, DOE would process RH-TRU sludge waste and the

[[Page 4081]]

low-level radioactive waste supernatant associated with the sludge by 
using vitrification or grouting technology. This alternative would 
include no treatment for the bulk of the solid waste that is not 
regulated under RCRA other than repackaging with some compaction. The 
solid waste would be better characterized during the repackaging effort 
to achieve final waste form certification before disposal. RCRA 
characteristic items would be isolated for macroencapsulation or other 
processing techniques to comply with applicable RCRA LDRs. This would 
ensure that alpha low-level radioactive waste would meet non-RCRA low-
level waste disposal requirements and comply with RCRA LDRs if interim 
storage is required on site.
    As required by the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ's) 
Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 
Parts 1500-1508), a no action alternative will be evaluated. Under this 
alternative, DOE would continue to store the TRU waste in tanks, 
subsurface trenches, vaults, and metal buildings, as discussed in the 
Background section, above.

Preliminary Environmental Analysis

    DOE incorporated environmental information very early in the 
project planning. Prior to selection of the contractor, DOE held two 
public meetings with stakeholders, had ongoing discussions with 
regulators, prepared a characterization report for the site of the 
proposed action, and sponsored an independent study of treatment 
technologies and contracting alternatives known as the Parallax study 
(ORNL/M-4693, Feasibility Study for Processing ORNL TRU Waste in 
Existing and Modified Facilities, September 15, 1995) (available in the 
public reading rooms listed below). Bidders were required to submit 
environmental data, and DOE prepared an environmental critique (under 
10 CFR 1021.216) for consideration in the procurement process. A 
synopsis of this critique has been filed with the EPA and made 
available to the public.

NEPA Process

    The EIS for the proposed project will be prepared according to the 
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the CEQ NEPA regulations, 
and DOE's NEPA Implementing Procedures (10 CFR Part 1021 ).
    Through the NEPA process begun with this Notice of Intent, DOE will 
continue to analyze environmental impacts and evaluate alternative 
actions while Phase I of the awarded contract is underway. The EIS for 
the proposed TRU waste treatment will incorporate pertinent analyses 
performed as part of the DOE's WIPP Disposal Phase Supplemental 
Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS-0026-S-2, September, 1997) and 
the WM PEIS. Processing the ORNL TRU waste in Oak Ridge is consistent 
with the Records of Decision issued for management of the transuranic 
waste for the aforementioned Environmental Impact Statements (63 FR 
3624 and 3629, respectively, January 23, 1998). The disposal of low-
level radioactive waste included in this contract will be consistent 
with the WM PEIS ROD for low-level waste that is yet to be issued.
    The contract allows DOE and Foster Wheeler Environmental 
Corporation to identify during Phase I other potential waste streams 
for processing at this facility. Any such waste streams would be 
considered in this EIS and subject to further NEPA review, as 
appropriate.

Preliminary Identification of EIS Issues

    DOE intends to address the following issues when assessing the 
potential environmental impacts of the alternatives in this EIS. DOE 
invites comment on these and any other issues that should be addressed 
in the EIS.
--Potential effects on air, soil, and water quality from normal 
operations and reasonably foreseeable accidents.
--Potential effects on the public, including minority and low-income 
populations, and workers from exposure to radiological and hazardous 
materials from normal operations and reasonably foreseeable accidents.
--Compliance with applicable Federal, state, and local requirements and 
agreements.
--Pollution prevention, waste minimization, and energy and water use 
reduction technologies to eliminate or reduce use of energy, water, and 
hazardous substances and to minimize environmental impacts.
--Potential socioeconomic impacts, including potential impacts 
associated with the workforce needed for operations.
--Potential cumulative environmental impacts of past, present, and 
reasonably foreseeable future operations, including impacts from using 
the proposed facility for potential waste streams other than those 
currently being proposed.
--Potential irreversible and irretrievable commitment or resources.

Related NEPA Reviews

    Final Waste Management Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement 
for Managing Treatment, Storage, and Disposal of Radioactive and 
Hazardous Waste (DOE/EIS-0200-F, May 1997); Waste Isolation Pilot Plant 
Disposal Phase Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS-
0026-S-2, September 1997); and Advanced Mixed Waste Treatment Project 
at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory 
Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS-0290-F, to be issued January 
1999).

Scoping Meetings

    The purpose of this NOI is to encourage early public involvement in 
the EIS process and to solicit public comments on the proposed scope of 
the EIS, including the issues and alternatives it would analyze. DOE 
plans to hold public scoping meetings in Oak Ridge to solicit both oral 
and written comments from interested parties. See DATES and ADDRESSES, 
above, for the times and locations of these meetings.
    DOE will designate a presiding officer for the scoping meetings. 
The scoping meetings will not be conducted as evidentiary hearings, and 
there will be no questioning of the commentors.
    However, DOE personnel may ask for clarification of statements to 
ensure that they fully understand the comments and suggestions. The 
presiding officer will establish the order of speakers. At the opening 
of each meeting, the presiding officer will announce any additional 
procedures necessary for the conduct of the meetings. If necessary to 
ensure that all persons wishing to make a presentation are given the 
opportunity, a five-minute limit may be applied for each speaker, 
except for public officials and representatives of groups who would be 
allotted ten minutes each. Comment cards will also be available for 
those who would prefer to submit written comments.
    DOE will make transcripts of the scoping meetings and other 
environmental and project-related materials available for public review 
in the following reading rooms:
U.S. Department of Energy, Freedom of Information Public Reading Room, 
Forrestal Building, Room 1 E-190, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW, 
Washington, DC 20585, Telephone: (202) 586-3142
U.S. Department of Energy, Oak Ridge Operations Office, 200 
Administration Road, Room G-217, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, Telephone: 
(423) 241-4780.


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EIS Schedule

    The draft EIS is scheduled to be published by August 1999. A 45-day 
comment period on the draft EIS is planned, and public hearings to 
receive comments will be held approximately one month after issuance. 
Availability of the draft EIS, the dates of the public comment period, 
and information about the public hearings will be announced in the 
Federal Register and in the local news media.
    The final EIS, which will incorporate public comments received on 
the draft EIS, is scheduled for January 2000. A Record of Decision 
would be issued no sooner than 30 days after a notice of availability 
of the final EIS is published in the Federal Register.

    Signed in Washington, DC, this 21st day of January 1999.
Peter N. Brush,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Environment, Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 99-1856 Filed 1-26-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P